The 27^th April, on the occasion of the Sunday of Divine Mercy, the popes Jean XXIII and Jean-Paul II will be canonized.

This sunday, the actual pope François will proceed to the canonization of two majors characters of the catholic Church, the popes Jean XXIII ( 1958-1963 ) and Jean-Paul II ( 1978-2005 ).

The pontificate of Jean XXIII lasted only 55 months but he has created big changes for the Church. Jean XXIII was the first pope to initiate the Vatican’s Council II which has open the catholic Church to the world. He left the image of a man close to the people, simple and humorous. He was beatified in 2000 by Jean-Paul II.

Jean-Paul II, however, was famous for his missionary zeal, his high communication skills and his proximity with young people. His pontificate was the longest of all the Church’s History. He was beatified in 2011 by the pope Benoît XVI. The contribution of Pope Jean-Paul II was of great importance to tear down the Belrin Wall and help the countries of Eastern Europe to recover their freedom and reunite with Western Europe.

The catholic Church wants to celebrate this two men for all they were able to bring along to the community. The Church reconize that without them, it could not be what it is today. But what does it mean to become saint ? For the catholic community, the canonization does not imply became a heros or a model of virtue. If a man or a woman are canonized, this is because they appear like reflecting the holiness of God. According to the catholic Church, canonized people are open to God and reflect his love.

Why the Vatican decided to canonized the two men on the same day ? It was the current pope’s decision. François explain that the two men were pillars, not only of the christian culture, but also of the christian holiness. Some Vatican’s personnalities think that this common canonization reflects a wish to keep a balance between two very different figures of the catholicity. And this is also a way to avoid a too big worship in favor of Jean-Paul II.

Solenne Gudin